Math Doesn't Suck

sassymonkey — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 12:37:44 -0500

I have a confession to make. It may result in my being shunned by pretty much my entire generation. But here it goes - I really wasn't a fan of The Wonder Years. It was ok, it just really didn't seem to speak to me the same way it spoke to other kids. But I always kind of liked Danica McKellar, the girl who played Winnie Cooper (and totally loved her on the West Wing too). What I liked about her was that she seemed smart - she didn't seem like the stereotypical airhead pretty girl. I was actually pretty good at math and was more than impressed when years later I found out that she co-authored a published proof. I was lucky that most of my female friends were good at math and never was made to feel that it was "ungirly". Unfortunately for us society wasn't really on our side. Does anyone else remember the talking Barbie that told us that "Math class is tough"? So I'm pretty excited to see that Danica McKellar, the queen of female math geeks everywhere, has written a book for teen girls called Math Doesn't Suck.

The book is styled much in the same way a teen magazine. In an interview with Wired News McKellar had this to say about whether her references to making cookies and examples using cosmetics were fun or if they reinforced gender roles.

"What do you think? If I'm teaching girls that do love to make cookies and do love fashion -- that they can use math as a part of that -- you think that's me saying, come on girls you belong in the kitchen, you belong shopping? Or, do you think it's me showing them how math is part of all their life, even the part they thought it had nothing to do with?"

Yay for being girly AND smart! Oh how I wish there had been more women saying this when I was a teen in a way that was actually approachable to teens. I had plenty of examples of smart women, but they didn't really speak my teenagd girl language. But that's my reaction. What is everyone else thinking?

My Thoughts Exactly is interested to see if it will really help students who are struggling. Freakgirl gives her two thumbs up and there's a great conversation in the comments about why math is useful. Aetiology also has an interview with McKellar. In a post written the previous day the interviewer mentioned that she bristled at the examples that used clothing, babysitting, etc. and would address this in the interview. McKellar's reply?

"Girls can enjoy being "girly" and "fabulous" alongside developing their brain - and in fact, in the book I develop the thesis that their brain happens to be their most important tool in becoming a fabulous young woman someday. They're not at odds; they can fit perfectly together. And the more they can be seen to fit together, the more girls will be attracted to math."

I'm really loving her answers. And I'm sure I'm not the only one that would have appreciated a word problem or two that dealt with makeup or cooking or shoes instead of about when two trains would meet each other (I lived on an island - we didn't even have trains). I am girly. I am smart. Deal with it. Danica, you keep talking. I'll be the one in the back of the room wearing a fabulous pair of pumps and cheering you on.

Contributing Editor Sassymonkey also blogs at Sassymonkey and Sassymonkey Reads.

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Math Doesn't Suck